Diaphragmatic sound-producer.



L. GRUBMAN. DIAPHRAMATIC SUUND PRODUCER.

r PPLlCTlON FILED MAR. 29, l9l5 1,209,148, Patented Dec. 19,1916.

L. GRUBMAN.

DIA-PHRAMATIC SOUND PRODUCER.

APPLICATION FILED MAH.29|1915.

1,209,148. Patented Deo. 19, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

'UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEO GRUBMAKN, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK. ASSIGNOR TO ELECTRIC SPARK APPLIANCE C0. INC., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

DIAPHRAGMATIC SOUND-PRODUCER.

Application filed March 29, 1915.

To all 'whom t may concern: Be it known thatI, Lno GRUBMAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings,

and city and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Diaphragmatic Sound-Producers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is designed more particularly for use in connection with automobile horns, although adaptable to other Sounders of the vibratory diaphragm type, and consists in the construction and arrangement of parts vhereinafter described and claimed specifically.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1, is a central sectionalelevation of an automobile liorn Vembodyingthe `essential features of my invention, taken upon plane of line 1-1, Fig. 2, the resonator and other parts being broken away for convenience of illustration; Fig. 2, isa rear View of the device; Fig. 3, atransverse section upon plane of line 3 3, Fig. 1; Fig. 4, is a sectional elevation illustrating a modification alterna-- tive to the arrangement shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 5, is a sectional view taken upon plane of line '5e-5, Fig. 6; Fig. 6, is a det-ail view illustrating in ageneral Way the relation of the percussive rotor toy the diaphragm and its pretuberant contact; Fig. 7, is an external view of the motor shell; Fig. 8, a detail. elevation of the magnetic field pieces, one of the poles being partly broken away; Fig. 9,k is a View taken at right angles to Fig. 8; Figs. 10, and 11, are detail views of the field magnets separated and looking toward the pole extensions iii each case; Fig. 12, is an elevation ofthe diaphragm; Fig. 13, is a sectional elevation of the diaphragm taken'upon plane of line 13-13, Fig. 12; Fig. 14, is a similar view illustrating the buckling'tendency of the old form of diaphragm and protuberant contact; Figs. 15, and 16, are detail views showing modifications of the meansfor effecting the lateral play of the percussive rotor with relation j to the diaphragm.

The main portion a, of thecasing is cylindrical, the rear end being closed by an end cap a and front portion being flared outward and closed by the capv a2to whichthe resonator a3, is attached. The elastic resil- Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 19, 1916.

seriai No. 17,636.

ient diaphragm D, is secured at its edges between langed front edge of the casing and the cap a2, as heretofore, space being provided between the parts for the vibration ofthe diaphragm.

The electro-motor M, consists in part of a shell made in two sections m, m', which interlock by means of dovetail joints m2, one of which is shown in Fig. 7, or by other equivalent interlocking means. The medial portion m3, of the shell is cylindrical and of adiameter to fit snugly within the outer casing a, without interfering with the adjustment of the motor shell longitudinally within said outer casing. This medial enlargement mg, of the motor shell affords accommodation for the single electric coil C, which surrounds the magnetic poles p, 72', and is iiiclosed on the other three sides by the shell m, m,vas shown in Fig. 1. The magnetic poles p, p, consist of lateral eX- tensions of the magnetic rings P, P, which fit tightly within the shell sections m, m,- the poles p, p, connected magnetically7 through the medium of the shell m, m, eX- tending inward centrally on opposite sides of the armature n, which is supported on the shaft n, journaled at the front in a bearing m4, on the forward part m, of the shell and at the rear in a bearing Z), adjustably mounted on the end plate a, of the exterior casing. This adjustable bearing b, also engages with and supports the rear member m, of the motor shell; and the rear end of the shaft n', abuts against the interior of the bearing b, either directly or indirectly as shown in Fig. 1, through the medium of an antifriction ball b.

The adjustment of the bearing 5, may obviously be effected by resort to various mechanical expedients and I do not limit myself in this respect, the main object to be attained being the longitudinal adjustment of the motor and its armature shaft with relation to the diaphragm D. In the construction shown in the drawings the bearing b, is provided with a bushing formed with a peripheral screw thread which engages a female screw thread formed for its reception in the end cap a; and a lock nut b2, is provvided to hold the parts in a prescribed posithe mean position of the diaphragm D, .is provided for the purpose of regulatinglivith accuracy the extent of overlap or depthl of engagement between the protrusions 1, 7, on percussive rotor R, and the protuberant contact (l, on the diaphragm D. If the percussive rotor R, approaches too closely the mean position of the diaphragm D, equivalent to its normal position when at rest, it is obvious that the frictional resistance bet\veen the protuberances r, 1', on` the rotor, and the contact d, may seriously impede the vibration of the diaphragm or stop the niotor. On the other hand if the impact or length of effective stroke of the protuberances r, r, on the rotor R, against the contact CZ, of the diaphragm, is very slight `the vibration imparted to the diaphragm may be insuiiicient to produce the requisite pitch of sound Waves and the horn will befeeble and ineii'cient. Furthermore it is desirable in starting to soundl the horn that the actuating motor or driving element acqui-re suliicient momentum before the percussive rotor R',

engages the diaphragm contact d, to overcome frictional resistance and thel inertia of the diaphragm itself, otherwise the driving element may be cloggedv and action retarded if not prevented entirely.' For these reasons I not only makel the' motor or driving element adjustable with relation to the mean po'- sition of the diaphragm as above intimated, but also mountI thejpercussive rotor,` the driven element, loosely upon the driving element in the sense that the driving element under certain conditions, as when starting, may make a partial rotation" on its longitudinal axis before positively engagingfwit'h and rotating the `driven element. And? asa f corollary ivhen the speed of the driving element slackens the driven element by acquired momentum will turn independently sufliciently to end positive engagement with the driving member so as to restore the tivo elements, driven and driving, tof their normal relative positions when at rest. And the means for effecting positive engagement betweenthe driving and driven elements are such that when disconnected as above stated the driven member on which thefpercussive rotor R, ismounted is freeto yield to the vibrationof the diaphragm, so ythat the rotor R, will be f kicked back outof engagement ivith contact (Z, on" the diaphragm, and hence inv re-starting the diaphragmivill af'- fordno resistance until the percussive rotor R, is again forced forwardt as the4 positive connection between the dring elementland the driven element is restablished as hereinafter more particularly ''xplainedll y I have deemed expedient tof' thus` state the function and operation of my sli'dable percus'sive rotor With relationto the driving element', in' a generaly Way' as above because said rotor R, may be mountedrigidly upon a sleeve (theA driven element) slidable on the driving shaft (the driving element) or rigidly to a shaft (the driven element) slidable longitudinally Within a driving sleeve,4as will be seen by reference to the accompanying drawings. *Thus in Figs. l, 15, and 1G, the driven member consists of a sleeve 7", integra-l With the percussive rotor R, Whereas in the modification shown yin Fig. e, the percussive rotor R, is rigidly mounted oirtlie'sh'aft a', which becomes the driven ele1nent,-the driving element being the sleeve a, to which the armaturen, is directly attached. InI either case; the one element is formed with a radial shoulder s, engageable With4 anl incline z', and a shoulder z", on the other element, and the action and relative arrangement of the parts is essentially the same.. In Fig. 15, the female screw of the sleeve r', is the equivalent of the shoulder s, ivhile the male screw thread z', is the inclin.

Either thepercussive rotor R, itself or the driven element to which it is rigidly attachedis formed with a iiy Wheel r2, Vor the equivalent thereof, i. ef., a preponderant'mass of material (of which the iiy Wheel' is itself an example) the-inertia of which will be suiii'cie'nt to overcome the frictional' resistance between the driving andv the'driven elements, soy that in starting the percussive rotor R, ivill lagA behind until positive engagement between the said parts 'is' effected, While in stopping tliersaid rotor will continue independently 'for a part of a revolution at least, sufficient to-end the positive connection between the parts'and afford af preliminary start for the driving element as hereinbefore stated.

It is to be understood that in the construction shovvn in Figs. l", and et, when the motor starts, the shoulder s, first encounters the incline z', and consequently shoves the rotor R, 4into engagement with the diaphragm D, the extension ofprotrusion of the percussion poi-nts'r, r, asf related to the contact LZ, onv the diaphragm D, being limited by and when the shoulder s, encounters the shoulder/Q asin Figs. l, andI 4C. InlFig's. 5,- and- G, the retracted or normal' positionof these'eng'ageable parts is ,shoivn-the vibration ofi the diaphragm' D, havingV forced the rotor R, back as soon' asl the shoulder z", nieves a-Way fromV the shoulder s, when power' is-cut-off1 from the driving element.

It vvill thus be seen that by the above means' the jamming of either motor or diaphragm is prevented, and the untrannneled and" effective ."ibration of the diaphragm assurecbthe longitudinal adjustment" of the motor anddriving element throng-hf' the medium of thev adjustable bea1i11g:b,1being: an important factor in this 'connection'- in that' it enablesE the action' bet-veen the driving element, Y percussive rotor, andt4 vibrator'y' diaphragm to be regulated positively Aand accurately. And all this I accomplish without the use of spring pressure, ythe advance and retraction of the ypercussive rotor, and the adjustment of` the driving element with relation to the diaphragm, being effected by positive means which donot relaX'in energy by reason of continuous` use,-a defect inherent in spring pressure.

The best results are attained by the use of a percussive rotor having a plurality of contactual protuberances concentrically arranged and engaging with a single wearing contact or point on the diaphragm. For the sake of symmetrical construction and arrangement of parts it is desirable that the centers of the rotor and of the diaphragm coincide, and hence it is necessary to use a contactual wearing point `off actual central alinement, but rigidly attached to the center of the diaphragm', ordinarily as shown in Fig. 14. This off center contact tends to buckle the diaphragm under stress of action as'illustrated to a somewhat exaggerated eX- tent in said Fig. 14, but nevertheless the y buckle or deflection is in practice sufficient yvolume of sound.

to seriouslyfimp'air the free and responsive resiliance ofthe diaphragm which is so essentialin attaining the desired quality and This difficulty I obviate by forming the elastic resilient metallic disk D, with one or more radial embossments or corrugations lione of which extends beyond and includes the center of the diaphragm as particularly in Figs. 1, 12, and 13,-the lateral shank or base d', of the contact member d, being preferably although not necessarily posltionedwithin the hollow of the corrugation as shown and rigidly secured to the center of the disk. This reinforcement counteracts the tendency of the diaphragm to buckle under strain, and distributes the latter evenly through the disk, especially when the latter is 'provided with a plurality of equidistant embossments as shown in Fig. 12, for instance. Thus the eccentricity of .the stress imparted kby the percussive rotor` is compensated for and all parts of the, diaphragm move in the same di` rection during its vibration,-a result which insures purity of tone and uniformity of pitch. f

The terminal posts t, t, for the circuit wires extend through the rear lcup a, of the casing and through the rear end m, of the vshell to which latter they are attached, and

incidentally perform the function of holding the motor andits shell against lateral turning Within the casing a.

It will be seen that by my construction and arrangement of parts herein shown and described I attain great simplicity of construction combined with efficiency of operation. Furthermore the parts may be quickly assembled without the employment of skilled labor for the purpose, and the whole device is adapted to cheapness of manufacture without sacrifice of quality or efficiency.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,

1. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination of a diaphragm, a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and movable laterally with relation thereto, a driving element, and means for rendering operative said percussive rotor by inclined contact-engagement between it and the driving element.

2. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination of a diaphragm, a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and movable laterally with relation thereto, a driving element, means for rendering operative said percussive rotor by inclined contact-engagement between it and .the driving element, and engagingly related shoulders on said percussive rotor and said driving element, whereby in the operation of starting the percussive rotor it is first moved longitudinally with relation to the driving member and transversely with relation to the diaphragm to bring it into contactual relation therewith and then rotated in unison with the driving element, for the purpose set forth.

3. Ink a sound producer` of the character designated, the combination with the diaphragm of a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and vmovable laterally with relation thereto, a driving element, means for rendering operative said percussive rotor by inclined contact-engagement between it and the driving element, an electric motor, and engagingly related shoulders on said percussive rotor and said driving element, the latter being rigidly attached to the armature of said electric motor, whereby when the latter is started the percussive rotor will be first moved longitudinally with relation to the driving element and transversely with relation to the diaphragm to bring it into operative relation therewith, and then rotated with relation to the driving element, for the purpose described. n

4. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination with the diaphragm, of a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and movable laterally with relation to said diaphragm, a driving shaft, said percussive rotor forming part of a sleeve slidable on the driving shaft, said sleeve being formed with an inclined surface and a shoulder, and said driving-shaft formed with a contact shoulder for engagement with the incline and shoulder on said percussive rotor sleeve, for the purpose described.

5. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination with the diaphragm, of a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and movable laterally with relation thereto, driving and driven elements, said percussive rotor forming part of said driven element slidable longitudinally on the driving element, said driving element, means for rendering operative said percussive rotor by inclined contact-engagement between the driven element and the driving` element, and engagingly related shoulders on said driven element and said driving element, whereby in the operation of starting the percussive rotor it Will be iir'st moved longitudinally With relation to the driving element and transversely with relation to the diaphragm to bring it into contactual relation thereto, and then rotated in unison With the driving element,` said driven element being of mass adequate to acquire' momentum sutlicient' to overcome frictional contact between it and the driving element so that When the rotation of the latter is retarded the driven element will movevout' of operative engagement therewith, `for the purpose described.

6. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination with the diaphragm, of a percussive rotor adapted to actuate said diaphragm and movable laterally With relation thereto,-the percussive rotor being of mass adequate to acquire momentum suilicient to overcome frictional contact between it and the element by which it is driven' so that When the rotation ofthe latter is retarded the percussive rotor will move out of operative engagement thereivith, for the purpose described.

7. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination With the diaphragm, of a percussive rotor adapted to actuate saidv diaphragm and movable laterally With relation thereto, a driving element, said percussive rotor forming part of a driven element slidable longitudinally on said driving element, means for rendering operative said percussive rotor by inclined contact-engagement between the driven element and the driving element and engagingly related shoulders on said driven element and said driving element, whereby in the operation of starting the percussive rotor will be first moved longitudinally With relation to the driving element andv transversely vwith relation to the diaphragm to bring it into contactual relat'ionthereto, and then rotated in unison with the driving element,j said driven element being provided designated, the combination, with a percussive rotor, of a diaphragm formed with a radial embossment, and a contact member secured in said embossment, for the purpose herein set forth.

9. In asound producer of the character designated, the combination, with a percussivey rotor, of a diaphragm formed With a radial embossinent and a protuberant contacty member secured to said diaphragm c0- incident With said radial embossment, for the purpose herein set forth.

l0. In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination, With a percussive rotor, of a diaphragm formed With a radial embossment, and a protuberant contact member secured to said diaphragm within the hollow of its said radial embossment.

ll. In a sound producer'of the character designated, the combination, with a percussive ,rotor formed With concentrically arranged contact protrusions, of a diaphragm formed ivith a radial einbossment and a pro- `tuberant contact `secured to said diaphragm coincident with said radial embossment, for the purpose described.

l2; In a sound producer of the character designated, the combination with a percussive rotor formed vvith concentrically arranged contact protrusions of a diaphragm formed with a radial embossment and a protube ant contact secured to saidl diaphragm Within thevhollow of its said radial embossment, forV the purpose described.

13. In a" sound producer of the character designated, the combination, With a percussive rotor formed With concentrically arranged contact protuberances, of a diaphragm formed with a plurality of radial embossments and a protuberant contact secured to said diaphragm coincident with one of said radial embossments, for the purpose described.

Lno GRUBMA.

Titnesses DOROTHY MIAT'T, GEO. WVM. Mm'r'r.

Copies of this p'teit iay be obtained' for `five cents' each, by ad'dreasixig` the Commissioner of Patenti, Washington, D. C. 

